Library consultations and a global pandemic: An analysis of consultation difficulty during COVID-19 across multiple factors

Anderson, Raeda; Fisher, Katherine; Walker, Jeremy

doi:10.1016/j.acalib.2020.102273

Cited by 27 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, additional literature has been published detailing and/or analyzing academic libraries' public services and responses to this worldwide crisis (including, for example, Kosciejew, 2021;Walsh and Rana, 2020;Anderson et al, 2021;Connell et al, 2021), but further discussion of this phenomenon is beyond the scope of this article.…”

Section: Academic Library's Disaster Response Policiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responding to the Camp Fire: a case study on an academic library's public services policy changes

Korber

2022

RSR

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PurposeThis article provides a case study on changes to an academic library's public services policies in order to support a community undergoing the ramifications of a natural disaster.Design/methodology/approachThis paper describes a case study on how the Meriam Library at California State University, Chico responded to the 2018 Camp Fire by making changes to public services policies. A literature review of disaster response and planning materials is included.FindingsThis case study demonstrates the need for flexibility in public services policies when experiencing natural disasters, and provides examples of how academic libraries can respond to natural disasters in order to support surrounding communities. Many library disaster response plans and literature do not include information on continuity of public services, or how public services policies can/should be temporarily altered in response to a disaster.Practical implicationsThis article provides practical examples of how an academic library can implement changes to support a local community experiencing a disaster.Originality/valueThe public services response by Meriam Library offers lessons in supporting a community in the wake of a natural disaster. While articles detailing library responses to natural disasters are fairly ubiquitous, these primarily focus on salvaging collections. Few resources exist on how an academic library can ensure continuity of public services to support communities experiencing the aftermath of natural disasters, and this article is a contribution to that area of research.

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Section: Academic Library's Disaster Response Policiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responding to the Camp Fire: a case study on an academic library's public services policy changes

Korber

2022

RSR

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“…There is a documented movement within reference services for a service model where library workers other than librarians staff the reference desk or librarians staff reference desks on-call only (Anderson et al ., 2021, p. 3). The question of staffing the physical desk was revisited at a CSI Library department meeting several years ago, and it was almost unanimously agreed that CSI librarians should retain desk shifts.…”

Section: Reference Service: Prior To the Pandemic And After The Campus Closurementioning

confidence: 99%

Virtual reference amid COVID-19 campus closure: a case study and assessment

Garvey

2021

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PurposeThis case study was conducted to assess and make changes to the consortial virtual reference service for the remainder of the period of fully virtual reference (campus closure); a second objective was to consider implications for service design and delivery upon the eventual return to the physical campus.Design/methodology/approachThis paper begins by introducing the institution, reference practices prior to the pandemic and the changes to reference service necessitated by the campus closure. After a literature review of material related to reference and the pandemic, several years of virtual reference service data are analyzed.FindingsThe use of consortial virtual reference service has significantly increased in the pandemic, as demonstrated by questions asked by users and questions answered by librarians. Changes to work practices based on these data have been made.Originality/valueThis work is original in that it relates to the physical closure of the campus due to the pandemic, about which, to date, little has been published specifically concerning the design and delivery of reference services.

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“…Building on transcript analysis and to improve the analysis of user questions, Gerlich and Berard (2010) created the READ scale, “a six-point scale tool for recording qualitative statistics by placing an emphasis on recording effort, knowledge, skills, and teaching used by staff during a reference transaction” (p. 116). It has since been used in other studies to determine the level of difficulty of questions and its implications for training, staffing, and referrals to subject specialists (Anderson et al , 2020; Maloney and Kemp, 2015). Maloney and Kemp (2015) used the READ scale to evaluate the questions received after the implementation of pro-active chat at their institution.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While no other studies thus far have focused on virtual reference services during the pandemic, some case studies have reported on the provisions of other reference services during this time. Several academic libraries chose to move in-person reference consultations and desk reference to individual consultations with a librarian via video conferencing software such as Zoom or Webex (Anderson et al , 2020; Gotschall et al , 2021; Howes et al , 2021). Anderson et al (2020) reported that librarians perceived the level of difficulty of the reference questions they were asked as higher than before the pandemic.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is the library open? How the pandemic has changed the provision of virtual reference services

Hervieux

2021

RSR

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PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the pandemic on the questions received via chat reference at a Canadian university library.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative analysis using coding of chat transcripts and a quantitative analysis of the length of chat interactions were used in this study.FindingsThe author determined that the types of questions received changed slightly during the pandemic due to the new library services offered. The complexity level of questions did not change significantly nor did the presence of instruction. The length of individual chat interactions and the total amount of time spent on chat increased, most likely due to the extended hours of the service and the number of patron questions present in one interaction.Originality/valueThis is the first study to investigate the potential impact of the pandemic on virtual reference services at a university library. The findings could lead to practical implications for libraries who need to close their in-person reference desk or need to respond to building closures.

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Library consultations and a global pandemic: An analysis of consultation difficulty during COVID-19 across multiple factors

Cited by 27 publications

References 63 publications

Responding to the Camp Fire: a case study on an academic library's public services policy changes

Responding to the Camp Fire: a case study on an academic library's public services policy changes

Virtual reference amid COVID-19 campus closure: a case study and assessment

Is the library open? How the pandemic has changed the provision of virtual reference services

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